• Home
  • News
  • Classifieds
  • Bangkok Hotels
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • Affordable Webhosting

Home Featured Article - August 2009 The Klong Way Home

Newsletter

Thailand Hotels

Thailand Hotels
Bangkok Hotels
Phuket Hotels
Pattaya Hotels
Chiang Mai Hotels
Hua Hin Hotels

Main Menu

  • Home
  • April 2009
  • August 2009
  • september 2009
  • October 2009
  • November 2009
  • December 2009
  • January 2010
  • Feb 2010
  • March 2010
  • April 2010
  • May 2010
  • June 2010
  • July 2010
  • August 2010
  • September 2010
  • October 2010
  • November 2010

Magazine Current Articles

post 36post 36
Read More >>
NETWORKING + LADIES NIGHT =THE BANGKOK TRADER MONTHLY LAUNCH PARTYNETWORKING + LADIES NIGHT =THE...
Tuesday, September 1, 2009, from 6:30pm to 8:30pm....
Read More >>
The Ad that Everybody’s Talking About!The Ad that Everybody’s Talking...
Read More >>

Magazine Featured Article

No Featured Article Available

Magazine Upcoming Articles

No Issue ID specified, please open module backend and specify the module ID
Wong Amat Condo Pattaya

Designed by:
SiteGround web hosting Joomla Templates
The Klong Way Home PDF Print E-mail
User Rating: / 0
PoorBest 
Featured Article
Written by Dave Stamboulis   
Saturday, 01 August 2009 00:00

The Khlong Way Home

by Dave Stamboulis

Having forsaken the luxuries (and higher rents) of living alongside the Skytrain, I am faced with the brutal task of confronting Bangkok rush hour traffic on a daily basis, swearing that each time I step into a packed bus and have to wait 35 min- utes through four red lights that I am moving immediately to Koh Chang… or that I am going to become a serial killer, I’m not sure which. Fortunately, my sanity is pleasantly restored when I realize that there is a far better option, that of riding the boat along the Khlong Saen Saeb.

Bangkok has historically relied on water transport for moving goods as well as people. The City of Angels was known as the “Venice of the East” for a good reason, as the canal system here was actually much more extensive than its Ital- ian counterpart. Many of the roads in Bangkok today are merely filled-in canals, or khlongs as they are known in Thai. Unfortunately, many of the khlongs and the boats that grace them are disappearing, but the Saen Saeb, one of the city’s longest waterways, still has a daily run that makes for fun day tripping, as well as a lifeline for the beleaguered resident.

The Khlong Saen Saeb used to connect all the way to the Chao Phraya River, but construction has put a stop to that, and the boats now start and end at the Phra Pan Fa pier near the Golden Mount. The boats run east, heading into the heart of town, terminating at Pratunam near the World Trade Center and Big C.

But, the canal continues on from there, and one’s ticket is valid for onward travel on a different boat, requiring a quick shuffle from one boat to another. Eastbound boats travel out from Pratunam, stopping at virtually every major intersection on the east-west grid: Chidlom, Phloenchit, Nana Nua, Asok/Petchaburi, Phrom Pong, Thong Lor, and Ekkamai, paralleling Petchaburi Road all the way into Khlong Tan. From Khlong Tan, the canal swings north, and heads up past the Mall in Hua Mark, Ramkamhaeng University, and Lad Phrao, continuing all the way to the Mall in Bangkapi, with the final stop (currently) being Wat Si Boon Nua. An extension, all the way to Minburi, is planned for next year.

The canal boats can seat about 70 people, with more than 100 packed on during rush hour. The seats are rather low and uncomfortable, and when it is hot out, it can get rather sticky. Curtains are drawn up along the sides of the boat to prevent waves from the khlong, generated by passing boats, from spraying in. The better option is to stand in the back, near the sides, so as to get the full spray from the turbulence, as well as to admire the vistas of the Bangkok skyline, and the old homes, beds of flowers, and relics of a life gone by that grace the sides of the canal. Looking carefully, one will notice that there are walkways that paral- lel the canal all the way from Khlong Tan to Pratunam, making it possible to ride a bike or walk practically a third of the way across Bangkok without ever seeing a car.

(The Khlong Way Home, continued on page 9)


Dave Stamboulis
About the author:


Read More >>


< Prev   Next >
Last Updated on Saturday, 03 July 2010 08:08
 
, Powered by Joomla! and designed by SiteGround web hosting

valid xhtml valid css